It has been a while that I had breakfast a Café Telegraph, probably due to the construction which is happening right in front of its doors since forever. The building of the new metro line has already started years ago, but it is far from finished in this area. Café Telegraph has therefore lost its terrace for the moment, not that it made any difference on this spring Sunday morning. We met right after it opened at 10am and this place is busy. Without a reservation I don’t think you get a table on the weekends.
Café Telegraph @Vienna
The four of us had a movie breakfast planned, but the breakfast option at Votiv Kino (movies mostly in OG with subtitles depending on the language) was already fully booked. Hence we ended up at Café Telegraph, which is just around the corner. The menu looked enticing and we ended up getting a couple of different breakfast options. I felt inclined to start my day meat free and ordered the green Shakshuka. It came in a cast iron pan, still very hot, with pita bread on the side.
green Shaksuka @Café Telegraph
As you can see it was mostly spinach in the pan, with a bit of broccoli, and a dollop of avocado mash. It included one egg and a couple of feta cubes. It lacked seasoning in my opinion and the spinach, which must have been frozen, sat in a lot of clear liquid. I disliked that the runny egg dissipated in the liquid and it was hard to mop up anything with this kind of pita. The green Shakshuka was a disappointment.
The Eggs Royal, a version of eggs Benedict but with crab meat and avocado, were another letdown. It consisted of a thick slice of brioche toast covered with guacamole and topped with crab meat, a poached egg, a layer of viscous Miso sauce Hollandaise, and a sprinkle of artificial caviar. The dish looked nice enough at first glance, but the limp salad around already marred the picture. As the most expensive item on the breakfast menu I had expected a little bit more polish.
Royal Eggs @Café Telegraph
But the salad turned out to be the least of the problems of this dish. Despite the Miso sauce Hollandaise the eggs were bland and completely forgettable. I asked my friend about the temperature of the it and also specifically about the bread. But she only remembered the blandness of it all and the complete lack of seasoning. After two dishes we had already established that the kitchen chef was not in love.
Last and in this case also unfortunately least was the crunchy edamame avocado bowl. A vegan burger topped with the same avocado mash as on the other dishes lay on a bed of rice with undressed salad sprinkled around. Here the avocado mash saw some chili flakes which didn’t make any difference though. My friend was disappointed from the get go and moaned that she had ordered the least interesting thing.
crunchy edamame avocado bowl @Café Telegraph
I mean it was a vegan dish, so I couldn’t help her with that. But it did sound more interesting in the menu, because I had actually considered it as well. The bowl lacked a sauce or something creamy, the avocado mash was just not enough. And again, the whole thing lacked seasoning. What was it with this kitchen? Did they run out of spices?
I wonder what’s the draw here? Because it cannot be the food at Café Telegraph and there are enough other places in the vicinity. The place was packed on that Sunday and when we left new customers were heading in. So whatever it is, people apparently enjoy it. Except my friends and I, we totally agreed that this breakfast was just not good. Next time when I am planning a movie breakfast, I will try to book a table at the Votiv Kino in advance. Yours, Pollybert
Café Telegraph
1090 Wien, Garnisongasse 7
Tel: +43 664 1445581
Tue-Sun: 10:00-17:00
https://cafetelegraph.eatbu.com/?lang=en
